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1203313

registered interest
date	12/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to allocate additional funding to schools for the employment of additional staff to support smaller class sizes from September 2020.
tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
tabling member printed	Tim Farron
uin	59200
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>Schools will continue to receive their budgets for the coming year, as usual, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. That will ensure that they are able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments.</p><p>We are also providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover unavoidable costs incurred due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources. Our latest guidance on this is set out below:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools</a>.</p><p>We want to see all children and young people back in school as soon as the scientific advice indicates they can because that is where they learn best. We are working towards bringing all children and young people back to school in September. We will provide further information and guidance with as much notice as possible.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 59201 question first answered 17/06/2020 15:40:17 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1203314

registered interest
date	12/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding he plans to allocate to schools to facilitate additional staff from September 2020; and what the timeframe is for the announcement of that funding.
tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
tabling member printed	Tim Farron
uin	59201
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>Schools will continue to receive their budgets for the coming year, as usual, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. That will ensure that they are able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments.</p><p>We are also providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover unavoidable costs incurred due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources. Our latest guidance on this is set out below:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools</a>.</p><p>We want to see all children and young people back in school as soon as the scientific advice indicates they can because that is where they learn best. We are working towards bringing all children and young people back to school in September. We will provide further information and guidance with as much notice as possible.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 59200 question first answered 17/06/2020 15:40:17 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1202817

registered interest
date	11/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Further Education: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he will take to ensure that students have full access to online learning while college and university campuses are closed as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	58700
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2020 answer text <p>When lockdown began, higher education providers reacted rapidly to move provision online (in many cases within 24 hours), to ensure that students were able to access teaching and assessment. The vast majority of providers are currently planning to move to blended or dual provision for the next academic year. They have redesigned courses and timetables to be suitable for these new styles of delivery, front-loaded the next academic year with more online friendly provision and moved areas which require practical, face-to-face teaching or assessment to the back of the academic year.</p><p> </p><p>The Office for Students (OfS) has published information and guidance for providers and students, including frequently asked questions on a broad range of issues. The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education has also published a series of guides to support higher education providers to secure academic standards and to support student achievement during the outbreak.</p><p> </p><p>The government is aware of the disproportionate impact that the COVID-19 outbreak will have on some students. Officials are working with the sector to identify what further steps may be necessary. The government has already worked closely with the OfS to help clarify that providers can draw upon existing funding to provide hardship funds and to support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. Providers are able to use the funding, worth around £23 million per month for June and July, towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment and mental health support as well as to support providers’ access and participation plans.</p><p> </p><p>Using this facility, providers have been supporting those with practical access issues through the provision of IT equipment including laptops and Wi-Fi dongles to ensure that they are able to continue their studies online.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 16/06/2020 10:13:29 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1202880

registered interest
date	11/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Academies: Discrimination
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons academy-related discrimination cases are outside the remit of the Education and Skills Funding Agency; and what options people have in an academy setting to pursue a discrimination case.
tabling member constituency	Ellesmere Port and Neston
tabling member printed	Justin Madders
uin	58728
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2020 answer text <p>The law covering discrimination is the Equality Act 2010. This applies to all maintained and independent schools, including academies, and maintained and non-maintained special schools in England.</p><p>The Act makes it unlawful for the responsible body of a school to discriminate against, harass or victimise a pupil or potential pupil:</p><ul><li>in relation to admissions;</li><li>in the way it provides education for pupils;</li><li>in the way it provides pupils access to any benefit, facility or service; or</li><li>by excluding a pupil or subjecting them to any other detriment.</li></ul><p> </p><p>If an individual feels that discrimination has taken place, in the first instance these cases could be resolved informally with the school. Should this fail to satisfactorily resolve the issue, then an official complaint can be made to the academy.</p><p>If the complainant feels that the trust has not followed its complaints procedure, they can escalate this to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). The ESFA will assess the trust’s compliance with their complaints policy but cannot overturn the decision itself or suggest remedy.</p><p>Formal proceedings in relation to a contravention of the education provisions of the Act will be brought in a county court. If the court rules that there has been a contravention, then it has the power to award an appropriate remedy, including any award of damages.</p><p>Specialist tribunals which have experience and knowledge of disability issues will hear cases of contravention of the education provisions on grounds of disability. In England this will be the First-tier Tribunal. If the Tribunal rules that there has been a contravention, then it has the power to make an order of a remedy, which it sees as appropriate.</p><p>The Department has set out advice on the Equality Act on GOV.UK, which is available at:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equality-act-2010-advice-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equality-act-2010-advice-for-schools</a>.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 16/06/2020 16:44:31 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4418 label Biography information for Justin Madders

1202886

registered interest
date	11/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Free School Meals: Southwark
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many primary school children receive free school meals in (a) Camberwell and Peckham and (b) the London Borough of Southwark.
tabling member constituency	Camberwell and Peckham
tabling member printed	Ms Harriet Harman
uin	58602
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2020 answer text <p>The most recent figures for number of pupils eligible for and claiming free school meals come from the school census for January 2019, published on 27 June 2019. 2,658 pupils in primary schools in Camberwell and Peckham constituency were eligible for and claiming free school meals in January 2019, and 5,732 primary school pupils in the whole of the London Borough of Southwark.</p><p> </p><p>Further information can be found in the annual “School, pupils and their characteristics” statistical release which is available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-school-and-pupil-numbers" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-school-and-pupil-numbers</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Figures relating to January 2020 are due to be published on 25 June 2020.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 16/06/2020 13:32:24 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
tabling member	150 label Biography information for Ms Harriet Harman

1202270

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Universities: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that universities have adequate short-term liquidity during the covid-19 pandemic; and whether he plans to allocate additional funding to that sector.
tabling member constituency	Rutland and Melton
tabling member printed	Alicia Kearns
uin	58104
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2020 answer text <p>The government recognises that the COVID-19 outbreak is bringing significant financial challenges to the higher education (HE) sector, and we have been working closely with the sector to monitor the likely impacts including on short-term liquidity.</p><p>On 4 May 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced a package of measures to ensure sustainability in HE at a time of unprecedented uncertainty.</p><p>We have stabilised the admissions system and will pull forward tuition fee payments, expected to be worth £2.6 billion, for providers so that they receive more cash in the first term of the 2020/21 academic year. This will have no impact on students but will allow providers to better manage financial risks over the autumn. This will be available to all providers across the UK. In reprofiling these payments, we are clear in our expectation that providers should use the cashflow benefits appropriately, taking significant steps to improve efficiencies and manage their finances in order to avoid cashflow problems in the future. Reprofiling in this way is a one-off intervention for the autumn term only, to help providers take all necessary steps now to prepare for the future.</p><p>In England, we will also be bringing forward £100 million of quality-related research funding for providers to the current academic year to help to address some of the immediate pressures faced by university research activities.</p><p>The department will consider purchasing land and buildings where they can be used for new or expanding schools and colleges in England. This will take place as part of existing programmes and using established procedures. This financial year (across purchases from all suitable vendors, including but not limited to HE providers), we have budgeted up to £100 million to acquire sites for planned projects in England. Details are available on GOV.UK at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-support-package-for-universities-and-students" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-support-package-for-universities-and-students</a>.</p><p>The government has also confirmed that providers are eligible to apply for its support packages, including business loan support schemes. The Office for Students (OfS), the regulator in England, estimates that this could be worth at least £700 million to the sector. We will only intervene further where we believe there is a case to do so and where we believe intervention is possible and appropriate and as a last resort.</p><p>In such instances, we will work with providers to review their circumstances and assess the need for restructuring and any attached conditions. The department will be working with HM Treasury and other government departments to develop this restructuring regime, as well as with the devolved administrations.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 16/06/2020 16:06:05 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
tabling member	4805 label Biography information for Alicia Kearns

1202303

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pupils: Computers
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his oral contribution of 9 June 2020, Official Report, column 180, when the 230,000 laptops for school pupils were ordered by his Department; and what schedule for delivery has been agreed with the supplier.
tabling member constituency	Warwick and Leamington
tabling member printed	Matt Western
uin	58056
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2020 answer text <p>The Department has ordered over 200,000 laptops and tablets. This order was placed on 19 April.</p><p>The Department is providing these devices in the shortest possible timeframe. Over 100,000 devices have been delivered to local authorities and academy trusts and thousands of devices continue to be delivered each day. Laptops and tablets will continue to be delivered throughout June.</p><p>Computacenter is a supplier on a government framework. Computacenter has been contracted to provide laptops and tablets in order to meet the requirement for disadvantaged and vulnerable children across England to receive devices to support remote education and access to social care services during the COVID-19 outbreak.</p><p>Further details of the contract are publicly available: <a href="https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e9047eeb-be82-4506-8a97-448ff0d73cfe" target="_blank">https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e9047eeb-be82-4506-8a97-448ff0d73cfe</a>.</p><p>As with all Government contracts, due diligence checks have been undertaken to assess the suitability of the supplier.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 58057 question first answered 15/06/2020 16:34:51 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4617 label Biography information for Matt Western

1202304

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pupils: Computers
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his oral contribution of 9 June 2020, Official Report, column 180, what the role of Computacentre is in distributing laptops to school pupils; on what basis that company was selected for that service; how much that company is being paid for that programme; and what checks his Department has conducted on that company's payment of tax in the UK.
tabling member constituency	Warwick and Leamington
tabling member printed	Matt Western
uin	58057
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2020 answer text <p>The Department has ordered over 200,000 laptops and tablets. This order was placed on 19 April.</p><p>The Department is providing these devices in the shortest possible timeframe. Over 100,000 devices have been delivered to local authorities and academy trusts and thousands of devices continue to be delivered each day. Laptops and tablets will continue to be delivered throughout June.</p><p>Computacenter is a supplier on a government framework. Computacenter has been contracted to provide laptops and tablets in order to meet the requirement for disadvantaged and vulnerable children across England to receive devices to support remote education and access to social care services during the COVID-19 outbreak.</p><p>Further details of the contract are publicly available: <a href="https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e9047eeb-be82-4506-8a97-448ff0d73cfe" target="_blank">https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e9047eeb-be82-4506-8a97-448ff0d73cfe</a>.</p><p>As with all Government contracts, due diligence checks have been undertaken to assess the suitability of the supplier.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 58056 question first answered 15/06/2020 16:34:51 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4617 label Biography information for Matt Western

1202382

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether schools will receive automatic funding from his Department to cover the cost of personal protective equipment.
tabling member constituency	Staffordshire Moorlands
tabling member printed	Karen Bradley
uin	57971
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2020 answer text <p>We have worked closely with Public Health England (PHE) and stakeholders on our approach and guidance throughout the Department’s COVID-19 response. In particular, we have worked with PHE to issue guidance to all schools and nurseries on a hierarchy of controls which, when implemented, create an inherently safer system where the risk of transmission of infection is substantially reduced. These include measures such as ensuring that anyone with symptoms does not attend their school or nursery, cleaning hands regularly, good respiratory hygiene, regular cleaning of touched surfaces, minimising contact and mixing and, where needed, use of personal protective equipment (PPE).</p><p>As our guidance details, the majority of staff in schools, nurseries and children’s social care settings will not require PPE beyond what they would normally need for their work, even if they are not always able to maintain a distance of 2 metres from others. PPE is only needed in a very small number of cases, which are set out clearly in our published guidance.</p><p>Schools will continue to receive their core funding allocations through which PPE should be funded.</p><p>The full guidance on safe working in schools, nurseries and children’s social care settings, including the use of PPE, can be found here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safe-working-in-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care/safe-working-in-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care-settings-including-the-use-of-personal-protective-equipment-ppe" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safe-working-in-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care/safe-working-in-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care-settings-including-the-use-of-personal-protective-equipment-ppe</a>.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 15/06/2020 16:28:43 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4110 label Biography information for Dame Karen Bradley

1202409

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of pupils in each education authority in England in (a) reception year, (b) Year 1 and (c) Year 6 returned to school in the week commencing 1 June 2020.
tabling member constituency	St Albans
tabling member printed	Daisy Cooper
uin	58087
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2020 answer text <p>Data on pupil attendance in educational establishments since 23 March was published on Tuesday 9 June at the following link and covers data up to Thursday 4 June:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings</a>.</p><p>The attendance breakdown at a national level for year groups, which was published on 10 June, can be found in table 3 in the underlying data. The data is collected from individual education establishments and the published figures include estimates for non-response.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 15/06/2020 16:31:31 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4769 label Biography information for Daisy Cooper